1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates, generally, to an apparatus useful to boaters such as fishermen and divers in marking certain spots in bodies of water with a marker. More particularly, it relates to a mechanical device that facilitates spot-marking in various known depths of water.
2. Description of the Prior Art
When a fisherman or diver finds a good spot for fishing or diving, the common practice in marking the spot is to attach a weighted line to an air-filled jug. The jug serves as a buoy, and the weight at the end of the line serves as an anchor means that prevents the line from drifting.
The length of the line attached to the jug is known. If the boater determines that the water is deeper than the length of the line, more line must be added. If the water is shallower than the length of the line, then removal of some of the line is required. This need to add or remove line renders the jug and line technique somewhat unsatisfactory.
Another shortcoming of using a jug and a line is that the line must be reeled in by hand when the marker is no longer needed.
What is needed, then, is a marker that can mark a spot in a body of water over a wide range of depths. The marker should not require the user to add or remove line as the water depth changes. Moreover, an improved marker should be provided that does not require hand-reeling of the deployed line.
However, in view of the art considered as a whole at the time the present invention was made, it was not obvious to those of ordinary skill in this art how the shortcomings of the known techniques could be overcome.